The packaging printing market is an area of growth and opportunity, a business where innovative, high quality companies can grow and flourish and companies that stand still lose ground quickly.

Having an entrepreneurial spirit is essential to success in packaging, and Accurate Box Co. is well set on that front. Founded in Paterson, NJ, in 1944, this third-generation family-owned high-quality corrugated box company has thrived in every market is has focused on, transitioning into new fields when the time was right. As the company celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2014, it has become a leading manufacturer of high strength litho laminated packaging, displays and standees.

Mark Schlossman, the company’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, noted that Accurate Box started as a folding carton printer before completely switching over to fluted corrugated.

“We are printers - it is our forte. We originally focused on folding carton, but moved into flute,” Schlossman said. “By the mid-1990s, there were very few folding carton printers left. Now we are 100% flute.”

One of the keys to the company’s growth is its ability to work with its customers to develop innovative packaging that is both eye-catching and functional.

“We are constantly looking for new avenues to sell boxes to, which is a big reason for our growth,” Schlossman said. “Our mission is to be the best in this country, and we are always searching for new and different jobs to be manufactured here. Our design team specializes in structural and graphic design, whether we are creating handles, gravity-fed or jaw mouth packages, to name a few.”

Accurate Box has one location, but its 300,000 square foot plant is streamlined and flexible. Accurate Box is constantly reinvesting in new equipment.

The company produces its corrugated jobs from the ground up, as it has two corrugators to go along with its KBA presses, and makes all of its own printing plates and cutting dies.

“We are self-contained, making our own flutes,” said Schlossman. “We have two corrugators here now. We are running large format 7-color presses, and we have three die cutters.

“The fact that we have one location allows us to make decisions quickly for our customers, and allows us to invest in having the best facility,” Schlossman added. “We bought a new press five years ago that prints 12,000 sheets per hour, replacing a press that printed 3,000 sheets per hour, giving us much more throughput, and just added a new sheeter. We buy the best new equipment, such as KBA presses first and foremost.”

Schlossman noted that the company only buys its inks from Superior Printing Ink. “We pride ourselves on our printing, and the ink plays a big role in that,” he said. “We get our ink in a timely fashion, and 55 gallon drums of ink help us. We have the flexibility to change colors at a moment’s notice.”

A family-owned business has to run efficiently in order to thrive, and Accurate Box makes sure it is running at top speed.

“We run just in time. We used to have a push system, but we have evolved into a pull system driven by our delivery board,” Schlossman said. “We make it a point to learn about our customers and their production schedules so we can produce what they need and balance our inventory and shipping. We have set up warehouses, which allow us to deliver within the customer’s time frame. We also practice Lean manufacturing.”

Having success in any business requires hard work, and Schlossman said that Accurate Box definitely has that covered.

“We have a great team,” he said. “We work hard and play hard, and have a really young, progressive group.”
Over the years, Accurate Box has successfully made the transition from folding carton to fluted corrugated, and from specific markets within each segment. Accurate Box serves customers in markets ranging from consumer goods, automotive aftermarket, household products, beverage, health and personal care, and most recently, the food service and catering category.

The ability to constantly remake and reinvigorate itself keeps the company moving forward.

“Success breeds success, and we are trying to find ways to keep it going,” Schlossman said. “Over the last 30 years, we have had to reinvent ourselves three times. We went from toys to electronics and now food and beverages. What the norm is today may not be the norm tomorrow. We are small, young, nimble, aggressive and progressive, and new ideas keep us going.”